


New Home, New Life

by Novarin



Series: Fallen Child [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Depression, Implied/Referenced Suicide, It's Chara, Other, POV Second Person, POV shifts, Self-Harm, Sibling Relationship, What Did You Expect, or maybe it's budding romance, take it how you want, they're like eight, who knows - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-02
Updated: 2016-02-06
Packaged: 2018-05-11 02:30:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5610556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Novarin/pseuds/Novarin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of side-stories from It's You, Chara. Basically, stuff I didn't have a chance to really put in the original story, but wanted to write anyway. Chapters are not always in chronological order, and will be from either Asriel or Chara's POV.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Fallen Child

Asriel was in the ruins by chance that day. His parents decided it was time to pay the old house a visit, and to check on the puzzles and city that lay within. He hadn't wanted to come— the ruins always freaked him out— but they said the monster was too young to stay home alone and no one would be able to watch him on short notice. He thought eight was plenty old enough, but they didn't listen.

So there he found himself, wandering about the oldest part of the underground. Apparently, Asgore and Toriel considered the ruins safe enough to let a child wander through. Or maybe they just hadn't noticed he wandered off.

Now that he thought about it, that was actually pretty likely.

Now worried, Asriel turned around to go back, but soon heard a loud cry from further ahead. And following it, a sickening crack. He froze in shock. Was someone hurt? Burying all hesitation, he rushed further ahead into the ruins. The air grew ever-more stale and musky as he raced through the halls. His ears flopped behind him as he ran. He hated the feeling, but there were more important things at hand. Thankfully, he were already somewhat close to the source of the sound. Just one hallway to go through...

Finally, Asriel reached the deepest part of the cave; the furthest one could go underground. It was a room that was so old, the pillars that once held it up were crumbling, and the walls that once showed murals of history were faded and covered in vines. But the only thing that interested him was the figure lying face-down in the grass. Shining down on them was…

"Sunlight?" he breathed. He couldn't believe it. The bright beams coming from the hole in the ceiling of the cave had to be from the sun, right? But another groan of pain brought his attention back to the matter at hand. He shook his head firmly. No, this injured monster took full priority (he learned that word from his father recently). "A-are you alright?" They moved, ever so slightly. Good! They were alive! But if they were dead, they would have already turned to dust, so that was a given.

Asriel completed the quick journey to the fallen monster, placing a hand on their back. Their chest was still rising and falling, so breathing seemed to be fine. For now. His breath quickened at the thought of this person's state failing soon. "Oh, please be alright…" He could feel tears starting to rise up. What if they turned to dust right in front of him? Or he couldn't get any help in time? He were about to try and roll them over to assess the damage, but they decided to move before the Boss Monster could even try. Shaking madly, the monster pushed themselves into a painful looking push up. Their hair still obscured their face. But then, they turned, looking straight at Asriel.

The first thing Asriel noticed were their eyes. Bright red, just like his. He found himself staring into them, shocked. Not many monsters had eyes like his family's. It was actually very rare. But that wasn't all.

They looked just as surprised to see Asriel as he was to see them. The realization hit him like a spell. This… wasn't a monster. It was a human! He recognized them from the history books! But what was a human doing underground? "You're alive! I'm so glad!"

"You fell from… up there, didn't you?" The human nodded, but their movement was slow. They winced and shuddered again, and Asriel realized with a start that they were not fit to be in this position. Just as they fell down, he wrapped his arms around their body.

He helped them to their feet, checking over them for damage. Their leg was bent at a… disturbing angle. He knew that it had to be broken. He made a mental note to let them stand on it.

"Asriel!" His mom's voice rang out through the ruins. "Where are you?" He winced. He realized he'd probably be in trouble for wandering off later. But for now, he knew had to do what he could for this human. The monster looked at the human again. Their head was starting to fall, and their eyes were glossed over. He panicked, heart-rate quickening. "W-wait! Don't pass out again! Um, what am I supposed to do in this situation… R-right, what's your name?"

They had to force out an answer. "Chara…"

"Chara, huh? That's a nice name. I'm-" Before he could finish, their head fell completely. At first, he panicked. Were they dead? He knew humans didn't turn to dust when that happened. But thankfully, they were still breathing. "-Asriel…" He grinned and hoisted them up better. He would just have to tell them his name later. When they woke up, they would have a lot to talk about.


	2. Being Yourself

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asriel does Chara's hair. It doesn't go as planned.

"Are you done yet, Asri- shit!" Chara whipped their head around, glaring back at the monster's head. He gave an indignant huff in response. Their head hurt from the strand of hair that had just been pulled out.

"Well maybe if you weren't moving around so much, it would be easier to do this." He managed to tug the comb from their hair, thankfully without another cry of pain. Chara rubbed the back of their head. "Or you could just brush your own hair. And don't swear."

Chara's face flushed red at the thought. Though whether it was from annoyance or embarrassment, they didn't know. What they did know was to turn away before Asriel saw them. They were never able to brush their own hair very well. It was all fluffy and there was a lot of it, so it got tangled up in the combs and brushes. No one had ever even taught them how to deal with it. So, they usually just let it grow. Not that they'd ever admit that to Asriel.

"You can't tell me not to swear, you know," Chara said indignantly. "I do what I want."

"But Mom says swearing is bad," he replied worryingly. Chara saw nothing but innocent concern in his red eyes. It was strange, and left a weird feeling in their gut. Why would he care? "You'll get in trouble if Mom hears."

"So what?" They turned around, looking into the mirror. Despite everything, they had to admit Asriel did a pretty good job. I actually look nice for once, they thought, a small smile on their face. For once, they looked how they wanted. Their hair wasn't all scraggly like some wild kid, but not super neat either.

_My brother would probably say I look like a girl though. The thought had shoved its way into their brain before they could stop it. And with it came a thousand others. He'd definitely teach me a lesson about being a man after this. I'm gonna get a lot of bruises. I wonder if Mom will let me use an ice pack. I hope I don't break any bones this time._

"Chara!" They blinked in surprise. Suddenly, they were back in the bathroom. With Asriel. Their hand dully pounded with pain, but it felt as if it wasn't even theirs. Asriel was looking at them, fear and confusion in his eyes. It's because I'm such a freak, isn't it? They thought bitterly. "Chara! Snap out of it!" They felt him squeezing their arm. Had he been doing that? Why was it like he was holding them back?

Finally, they noticed. The mirror before them was now adorned with a spiderweb of cracks. They could see their face, shattered into a hundred fragments across the once pristine surface. Something about that grounded them back in reality. And with it came a throbbing pain in their hand. No. Their fist.

With a choked gasp, Chara suddenly pulled back. Asriel didn't have time to react and couldn't hold onto their arm. Now, Chara could feel trickles of warmth flowing down from their knuckles. Bits of glass dug into the skin, bringing flashes of pain every second. "Sh-shit."

"Ch-Chara...?" Asriel breathed. "A-are you…?" he stepped forward. Chara pulled back. They hated that look on his face. He felt bad for them. It was just pity. Somehow that was even worse than being ignored. They still couldn't bear to look at their hand. It was starting to hurt even more now.

Without another thought, Chara jumped down from the stool and ran. They didn't even bother to close the door behind them. They heard Asriel shouting behind them, but they blocked him out, covering their ears with their hands.

_I messed it! He knows I've got problems! Why would he ever want to be around me? I'm mean to him anyway. I should have just left when I had the chance. He's better off without me!_

Painful thoughts filled Chara's head. But unlike actual words, they couldn't block out their own thoughts. Their eyes clenched in pain. Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!

And suddenly, they crashed into a big, soft wall. They bounced back, and heard a cry of surprise. "Oh, Chara? What has you running so quickly?" Asgore asked in his deep baritone voice, a chuckle accompanying it.

Chara refused to look up. They couldn't meet his eyes. But they couldn't hide their bloodied hand. As they stared down at the floor, spots of red started to appear. They could practically hear each drop as it struck the ground. They heard a quiet gasp from Asgore, but then, a reassuring paw on their back. Chara tensed at first, but even they couldn't resist his calming presence.

"What do you say we go get your hand cleaned up, Chara?" They sniffled, but allowed Asgore to lead them into the kitchen. In the back of their mind, they felt just a bit glad they weren't going back to the bathroom. Asriel hadn't followed them, so he was probably still in there. They couldn't face him either.

Chara was silent as Asgore lifted them up to the sink and helped them rinse the blood and broken glass from their hand. They refused to show any emotion, yet winces of pain were apparently determined to show. But Asgore's soft, patient smile didn't falter in the slightest as he bandaged up the injuries.

"There, all better?" Chara nodded slightly. It didn't hurt as much anymore at least. They still stared at the ground. "You know, you were very good at keeping still while I was helping you. I think that deserves a treat." Before they knew it, a huge furred hand was before them. In the palm was a king-sized bar of chocolate. The really good kind. The kind that they only got while with the Dreemurrs.

At once, Chara wanted to snatch it away. Their instinct to do so was almost impossible to ignore. But they managed to hold back and tentatively take it. They were unwrapping it as Asgore spoke again. His tone was decidedly less jovial. More serious. After all, a kid hurting themselves is serious business.

"Chara, was this… on purpose?" he asked. Chara tensed again. They started to shake their head, but stopped halfway through and nodded instead. Was it on purpose? Maybe. They didn't know. All they knew was that their hand hurt and they scared Asriel. "I see. So it was an accident?"

Chara nodded again, slowly. "I… I don't know what happened…." _Just like the last few times._

Asgore hummed slightly as he considered that. "That's alright." He picked them up again, and sat them on his lap. Chara didn't resist. They only leaned deeper into his chest. Even with the shirt on, he was still so soft and comforting to nuzzle up against. "Did it have to do with you're new hair, Chara? I thought it looked pretty good on you."

Chara bunched up part of his shirt with their uninjured hand. He was always so good at knowing what was wrong. "No, I like it…. But I thought..." they weren't able to say it well. It sounded so dumb now that they were trying to say it out loud. "I thought I looked too much like a girl. And I'm not a girl! But the old way made me look like a boy a lot. And I'm not a boy either!" They weren't able to stop now. It was spilling out like water from a broken dam. "Even though everyone says I'm a boy, and I have to stop pretending I'm neither, I like girl stuff too! But everyone hurts me for it! But I'm not good at boy stuff, and I get hurt doing that too. I… I just don't get me."

Their eyes were starting to fill with bitter tears. The wall they had constructed was starting to chip and break again. Boys don't cry! They chanted internally. Boys don't cry! Stop it already!

But this one, they couldn't hold back. They buried their face in Asgore's chest and let it all out. There was nothing else they could do. How long had it been since they cried for real, out of pure sadness and pain? Longer than they could remember in their short life. This was different from months ago when they first arrived. They felt awful.

And yet, Asgore didn't mind. Chara could feel his large paw on their back, rubbing it to give them just a bit more comfort. "It's alright, Chara. Just let it out."

They weren't sure how long this went on. But by the time Chara was able to stop sobbing, their voice was hoarse and their body felt weak. But somehow, they felt better. A lot better. As if a weight had been lifted from their chest. Until then, they were trapped under a huge boulder. But now, it was like they were free of at least part of it.

"Do you feel better now?" Chara nodded, for real this time. They finally looked up and met his eyes. Red met red. "I just want you to know something. Whatever the humans you know said up on the Surface, we'll always accept you for who you are. Sometimes people don't figure that out for a while, but that's okay." A warm, broad grin filled his features. "And we'll always love you, no matter what. So please, love yourself."

Chara couldn't help it. His smile was infectious. "Y-yeah. I will."

Asgore stood up, still holding Chara in his arms. Their arms wrapped around his neck as much as they could to hold on. They suddenly felt exhausted and drained. After all of that, they didn't have any energy left. "How about a nap, Chara?" His voice rumbled through them. "I always feel like after a good cry, a long nap is much appreciated."

Chara nodded. A nap sounded really good right then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is slowly turning into my "relieve angst here:" story. And my writer's block story. Either way, I'm suffering. But anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. It took me way longer than it should have, and I'm not even writing this on any sort of schedule. That is, if such a thing exists for me.

**Author's Note:**

> "Another story?" you ask. "Aren't you already working on another story in this same series?" The answer is yes. But also, I have a very short attention span and I couldn't not write this. It wouldn't leave me alone. But don't worry, I'm still going to be writing "It's Still You"


End file.
